Striping dispenser



L. H. BLOOM STRIPING DISPENSER Filed April 19, 1957 Nov. 8, 1960INVENTOR. fr H. BzaoM United States Patent() "vice srRrPiNG DISPENSERLee H. Bloom, Larchmont, N. assignor to Lever Brothers Company, NewYork, N.Y., a corporation of Maine Filed Apr. 19, 1957, Ser. No. 653,821

2 Claims. (Cl. 222-94) The invention relates to an improvement indevices for dispensing fluent or paste-like materials of differentcharacter and particularly to improvements in dispensing two or morepaste-like materials of different color.

In one aspect of the invention, it is particularly applicable to coaxialcollapsible dispensing tubes for producing a striped tooth pasteproduct. The coaxial collapsible dispensing tubes heretofore known havebeen concerned with maintaining two chemically reactive ingredients inseparation until they are dispensed. When such devices are attempted tobe used to produce a striped tooth paste product, it has been found thatthey are virtually inoperative to produce such a product which iscommercially acceptable.

One of the principal disadvantages in the use of the dual coaxial tubearrangement for producing a striped tooth paste product is that thespace between the inner tube and the outer tube, which space containsthe striping material, must be so small to contain the small amount ofstriping material needed to form only a thin surface stripe withoutspreading over the remaining surface of the paste stream thatconsiderable ditliculty is experienced in filling this space. Theproblem, therefore, is to provide a structure for utilizing the totalamount of striping paste which is contained in this space commensuratewith ease in filling.

In another aspect of the invention, it is applicable to the single tubetype dispenser. In this arrangement the invention operates in the samemanneras it does with the coaxial tube dispenser. Sufficient pastematerial to furnish the striping is provided by extending the maindischarge passage into the interior of the tube a short distance,surrounding it with striping paste material, and providing additionaldischarge passages or ports therefor. This arrangement likewise wouldutilize only a very small and critical amount of striping paste if onlya thin surface stripe is to be provided.

Accordingly, it is a principal object of the present invention toprovide a structure for producing a striped tooth paste product whichpermits the striping material to extend substantially to the center ofthe stream of tooth paste.

Another object of the invention is to provide a construction fordispensing striped `tooth paste. Y Y

A further object of the invention is to providea striped tooth pasteproduct utilizing paste material of two different characteristicswithout having one paste material be exhausted before the other.

It is also an object of the invention to provide a construction forutilizing paste material of two different characteristics to produce aunitary stream.

Generally, the invention includes a plurality of circumferentiallydisposed pie-shaped or substantially triangular outlet passageways atthe inner end of the discharge passageway of a collapsible tubedispensing container. Paste material from a body of one characteristicwill be extruded through each of these pie-shaped pas` sageways into thedischarge passage to provide a portion The various novel features ofconstruction, combina-4 tion and relation of parts by which theforegoing and other objects are attained are set forth in detail in thefollowing specification.

The drawing accompanying and'forming part of the, specificationillustrates one practical commercial embodi ment of the invention asapplied to a paste dispensing- It should be understood, however, thatthe inven tion is not limited to this use or to this particular for-mtube.

of structure or dispenser as will appear from the scope of the appendedclaims.

. In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a View partially in section showing the construction of theinvention for a single tube type of,

dispenser;

Figure 2 is an end view of the construction shown in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a view partially in section showing the construction of theinvention for a dual tube type of dispenser; and

Figure 4 is a perspective view of the insert used withk one form of thesingle tube type of dispenser and provided with pie-shaped outletpassageways according to one embodiment ofy the invention.

For the purposes of this description, it will be assumed that thedispensing device is to be used to dispense toothpaste which presentsthe appearance of being striped, it being understood that the inventionis not limited totooth paste or to the specific characteristics of thestructure described. i I

Referring first to the single tube type dispenser, Figure 1 of thedrawings shows a conventional disposable aluminum tube dispensingcontainer 10 with a sloping forward end 11 terminating in a head end 12.The outer surface of the head end 12 is provided with a plurality ofthreads 13 for securing a cap (not shown). The discharge passageway 14of the tube 10 extends from a discharge port 15 at the outer end to aplurality of pie-shaped outlet passageways 16 at the inner end. Theoutlet passageways 16 may be formed in one. end of an insert 17 as shownin Figure 4, or they may be formed integrally with the dischargepassageway 14 and, therefore, separate from the insert 17.

The spaces intermediate of the outlet passageways 16. are communicatedby means of a plurality of passageways 18 with a zone defined betweenthe sloping forward end 11 and the hollow insert 17. This is illustratedmore clearly in Figure 4 which diagrammatically indicates that thepassageways 1S communicate with the discharge passageway 14 at thepoints 19, 20 and Z1 intermediate each of the outlet passageways 16 inthe hollow insert 17.

( The dispensing container 10` is first iilled withy the ma-I terials tobe dispensed in the form of a striped streamy by first charging into thedispensing container the material which is to give the appearance of thestripes (i.e., a red tooth paste, for example). This material is chargedinto the head end of the dispensing container 10 about the hollow insert17 in such a quantity that it does not fill the container beyond thepoint to which the inner end of the insert 17 extends into thecontainer. The material which is to form what will appear to be the bodyof the striped tooth paste (i.e., white tooth paste, for example) isthen charged into the dispensing container 10 to lill the balance of thecontainer space.

In operation, the pressure applied to the dispensing Patented Nov. 8,1960 container in the usual manner forces the white tooth paste throughthe center of-the hollow insert 17 and through each of the pie-shapedoutlet passageways 16. The pressure applied to the container istransmitted by the white tooth paste longitudinally in a forwarddirection to the red t-ooth paste which is packed in the head end' ofthe dispensing container 10 about the hollow insert 17. As a result ofthis pressure, the red tooth paste is forced through the passageways 18to ll the space between each of the streams provided by the outletpassageways 16 thereby forming in the discharge passageway 14 acompleted stream of striped `tooth paste. Since the striping material(red tooth paste) forms a substantial part of the unitary striped toothpaste product, the length of the hollow tubular member 17 may extendback into the container 10 past the sloping forward end 11 therebyproviding ample space to contain sufficient striping paste for -thetotal amount of tooth paste contained in the balance of the container10.

The invention has particular applicability with the dual coaxial type oftube construction. With-this type of construction, ample space may beformed -between the inner tube and the outer tube to permit ease inlling since a substantial amount of the striping paste is used with aconstruction according to the present invention. As shown particularlyin Figure 3 of the drawing, the numeral 30 represents an innercollapsible container of any suitable material such as a conventionaldisposable aluminum tube dispensing container. Formed coaxially aboutthe inner tube 30 is an outer tube 31 which is formed of the samematerial. The sloping forward end 32 of the outertube 31 terminates in ahead end 33 which is provided with a plurality of threads 34 forsecuring a cap v(not shown). The inner-surface of the head end 33 isprovided with -a plurality of threads 35 into which is threaded the headend 36 of the inner tube 30. Of course the head ends 33 and 36 of thecoaxial tubes 31 and 30, respectively, may be attached or positioned byany other suitable means, if desired.

A discharge passageway 37 extends from a discharge port 38 at theforward end of the head end 36 back to a plurality of pie-shaped outletpassageways 39 which are similar to the outlet passageways 16 as shownin Figure 2 of the drawing. A plurality of passageways 40` communicatethe spaces intermediate of the outlet passageways 39 with the spacebetween the inner tube 30 and the outer tube 31.

In operation, the tooth paste which is to form onepart of the stripedstream is lled into the inner tube 30, as for example, white toothpaste. Tooth paste of another color, as for example, red, is lled withinthe space between the inner tube 30 and the outer tube 31. By ap# plyingpressure to the dispenser in the customary man ner, a plurality ofpie-shaped streams of white tooth paste are formed by the outletpassageways 39 and the space between each of these streams is filled byred tooth paste from the passageways 40. Thus, as the stream is extrudedout the discharge passageway 37, the resulting product will have theappearance of a striped tooth paste product.

While the invention has been described with reference to the particularconstruction shown, it is not restricted to the exact details hereindisclosed and this application is intended to cover such modications orchanges as may come within the purposes of the invention or the scope ofthe following claims.

I claim:

l. A device for dispensing striped tooth paste comprising a containerhaving a neck with a tubular discharge passageway therein, the dischargepassageway opening a-t one end externally of. said container and openingat the opposite end at a rst plurality of substantially triangularoutlet passageways in open communication with the container, eachtriangular passageway being posi tioned with an apex thereof generallytoward a central axis defined by the discharge passageway and beingspaced apart radially from each other, the container having a first zoneincluding that portion of the container disposed about the triangularpassageways, the first zone being adapted to contain tooth paste of onecolor, and a second zone into which the triangular passageways terminatein open communication and adapted to contain tooth paste of anothercolor, and a second plurality of outlet passageways communicatingbetween said rst zone and points in said discharge passageway radiallyintermediate of the triangular passageways, the triangular passagewaysproviding means for forming an incomplete stream o-f paste of one colorhaving circumferentially disposed spaces therein extending to the centerof the stream and the second plurality of passageways forming means forlling the spaces in the incomplete stream with paste-of another color toform a unitary stream of striped tooth paste.

2. A device for dispensing paste materials comprising a plurality :ofconcentrically disposed collapsible tubes,

the inner of said concentrically disposed tubes having a irst pluralityof pie-shaped outlet passageways communi eating between said inner tubeand one end of a discharge passageway, each of said rst plurality ofpassage ways being positioned with an apex thereof generally toward acentral axis defined by said discharge passageway and being spaced apartradially from each other, the opposite end of saidvdischarge passagewayterminating at a discharge port opening externally of said tubes, saidpieshaped outlet passageways providing means for producing anyincomplete stream of paste material having circumferentially disposedspaces therein extending to the center of the stream in said dischargepassageway, and a second plurality of outlet passageways communicatingbetween an outer concentrically disposed tube adapted to contain adissimilar paste material and said discharge passageway at pointsradially intermediate of the pieshaped passageways, the second pluralityof outlet pasl sageways forming means to till the spaces in theincomplete stream with paste of dissimilar color to form a uni-- tarystream of paste material.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,535,529 Hopkins Apr. 28, 1925 1,566,329 Laskey Dec. 22, 1925 1,699,532Hopkins n Jan. 22, 1929 v2,789,731 Marraino Apr. 23, 1957

